Suddenly, Old Lady Mu attacked. Long needles pierced through the void and formed a divine hologram that pressed down upon Fu Yuan and Shui Ningqiu. “Whether you give me permission or not, I will be checking the delivery of flourishing crystals today. If there is no issue, I will apologize and go to Monarch Luo to receive appropriate punishment.”
Fu Yuan pushed Shui Ningqiu aside. His palm trembled as he gathered his monarch essence into a tri-colored palm print that slammed into the divine diagram.
There was an explosion that tore the spacecraft apart as Fu Yuan stumbled back. Simply put, he was no match for Old Lady Mu.
Old Lady Mu was from the same generation as Monarch Mu. While Monarch Mu had been blessed with incredible talent and become a Monarch, Old Lady Mu’s talent was worse than her sister, but she had still managed to become a peak Demi-Monarch. The only person in the entire Mo Courtyard who had surpassed the woman was Chen Le. Fu Yuan lacked the necessary strength.
“Old Lady Mu, are you trying to steal the flourishing crystals?” Shui Ningqiu shrieked.
At this moment, Fu Yuan whirled around and grabbed Shui Ningqiu's hand. Even as she stared at him in disbelief, he snatched her cosmic ring away from her. “I'm sorry, but we can't hide this anymore. We'll meet again if fate allows.”
The man then turned back to throw another palm strike at Old Lady Mu while also tearing through the void and fleeing.
Shui Ningqiu was left completely dumbfounded. She had not expected Fu Yuan to flee as she had already planned everything out: since Old Lady Mu had no authority to check the delivery to the rainbow wall, Fu Yuan would hold the woman back, which would give Shui Ningqiu the time she needed to put back the stolen flourishing crystals. After that, they would reluctantly allow Old Lady Mu to check the delivery, which would confirm that there were no issues. Monarch Luo would not condemn them just because they had previously been in a relationship, as he would not care about such matters.
Fu Yuan running away was completely outside of Shui Ningqiu’s expectations, especially so quickly and openly. His escape was essentially the same as admitting that the two of them had been stealing flourishing crystals from the delivery, which meant that Fu Yuan had betrayed Shui Ningqiu.
“Fu Yuan-” Shui Ningqiu roared in fury.
However, the void had already recovered, and Fu Yuan had vanished without a trace.
Old Lady Mu's divine diagram swept through space, but it completely missed the fleeing man.
Her eyes grew cold. “He certainly ran off quickly.”
The old woman then turned to Shui Ningqiu. “So, there really is something wrong. Just how many flourishing crystals have you two stolen over the years? Let's see how you intend to explain yourself to Monarch Luo.”
Shui Ningqiu’s face turned ashen. Fu Yuan had fled, which meant that there was no longer any need for an investigation. Everything was already over.
A short time later, Old Lady Mu was respectfully facing a display. She was in the process of contacting none other than Monarch Luo himself.
As soon as Monarch Luo connected to the call, he saw both Old Lady Mu and Shui Ningqiu. "Did Fu Yuan escape?"
"Yes. Your subordinate was incompetent and failed to keep him here," Old Lady Mu apologized.
Monarch Luo stared at Old Lady Mu. "How did you discover that they have been stealing flourishing crystals?"
"I received a report, and we also coincidentally discovered the two’s relationship from their younger years. On top of that, Fu Yuan's progress in recent years has been suspiciously fast. Despite only recently becoming a Demi-Monarch, he has been quickly improving, and at the moment, he has almost caught up to me. Because of all of these clues, I felt the need to investigate them, but I didn't expect Fu Yuan to escape so decisively," Old Lady Mu replied.
Monarch Luo then turned to Shui Ningqiu, whose face had lost absolutely all color. He spoke in a soft tone, "Take care of this. You are the Head Collector starting today."
Old Lady Mu was thrilled. "Thank you, my Lord."
Just as Fu Yuan had said, Monarch Luo could not care less about such a trivial number of flourishing crystals. They came from his own power, which meant that he could create as many as he wanted. As long as Monarch Luo was not alerted that funds were being embezzled, there would not be any problems. However, the moment things were exposed, there was no longer any reason for Shui Ningqiu to be kept around.
Monarch Luo saw every cultivator in the Three Monarchs Universe as his own servants. He did not care if Shui Ningqiu lived or died, nor the reason behind the actions that she had taken. He simply had no need to know.
Old Lady Mu hid her excitement. The Head Collector was not just responsible for charging the rainbow wall with flourishing crystals; this person would also control the amazingly powerful Crystal Bank. Being given such a position would further increase the Mu family’s influence in the Three Monarchs Universe.
Monarch Mu was indeed missing, but the Mu family would never collapse while Luo Zang still lived. Giving Old Lady Mu this position was also Monarch Luo’s way of demonstrating his own position and making it clear that he supported the Mu family.
As the image disappeared, Old Lady Mu sighed and gestured for someone to take Shui Ningqiu away. The old woman remained silently standing where she was.
The next moment, the void split back open, and Fu Yuan stepped out.
Old Lady Mu's eyes flickered as she looked over. "You!"
She was prepared to attack, but Fu Yuan's face suddenly transformed, morphing into Xuan Qi.
Old Lady Mu held back from attacking, and she stared at Lu Yin with a strange expression on her face.
Ever since the woman had first laid eyes on this man, Monarch Mu had disappeared, as had the the Fenglei clan. Now, the Three Monarchs Universe was not the same place that it had once been.
Old Lady Mu was not sure that Monarch Mu's disappearance was related to this man, but she was unable to think of any alternative explanation.
For more than two years, her life had hung by a thread as she awaited this man's return.
Every time she met with Monarch Luo, she had been gripped by fear, terrified that the Monarch would see through her.
Never before had she experienced such a crisis. After all, Old Lady Mu had never been sent to the front lines to fight against Aeternus.
"Well done," Lu Yin praised the woman with a smile. He had captured Fu Yuan after the man entered the spacecraft. Even if Fu Yuan was a complete fool, he would have never fled the scene immediately. Where could he run to? Fleeing would mean never being able to return to the Three Monarchs Universe, and as someone who cultivated monarch essence but had yet to become a Monarch, staying in a universe without monarch essence meant that his energy reserves would eventually run out.
"Why did you help me?" Old Lady Mu asked.
Lu Yin took a seat. "I'm not helping you. I'm simply after some resources. If not for the imperial treasury, I would have taken what I needed from your Mu family."
The Mu family possessed a large amount of resources, though it was unlikely for them to have even ten billion flourishing crystals.
Everyone in the Three Monarchs Universe could be regarded as a servant of the three Monarchs. Even if the Mu family was an exception to that standard, they would never be allowed to gather such an exorbitant amount of resources.
Old Lady Mu stared at Lu Yin for a long moment. "Are you connected to Monarch Mu's disappearance?"
Lu Yin met Old Lady Mu's eyes. "I have her."
A chill ran down the old woman’s spine. Monarch Mu was a peak powerhouse, and yet she had been captured by this man. Just who was this man? What kind of strength was he hiding? She could not even imagine it.
"What are you planning? Is the Fenglei clan behind-?" Before Old Lady Mu could even finish her question, Lu Yin was already gone.
She stared blankly at the suddenly empty space before her. A feeling of complete powerlessness washed over her.
…
What happened in the Three Monarchs Universe had no effect on Xuan Qi, who had been resting in his quarters, nor did it affect Cang Bi, who remained close to Xuan Qi at all times.
Stepping into the courtyard, Lu Yin drew a deep breath. "Every universe has its own feeling. Which universe do you find the most comfortable in the Sixverse Association?"
Cang Bi replied, "I belong to this universe, so it’s only natural that I find my own universe to be the most comfortable."